Emily Rosenwasser, Emily.Rosenwasser@sierraclub.org, 720-208-6055
NEW YORK -- The Sierra Club commemorated Climate Week by releasing a new video today voiced by actor John Leguizamo that highlights the power of solar energy as a climate solution worth fighting for. The short “Solar 101” video offers a helpful resource for explaining how rooftop solar works, the coordinated efforts of many power and utility companies to push back on this clean energy resource and the importance of protecting solar policies so clean energy can become accessible to all. Despite popularity and record-breaking growth, rooftop solar is increasingly under attack by lobbyists from power companies that are fighting policies that would expand solar access and benefits.
“When the utility monopolies fight against fair solar policies and access, they are hurting low-income communities of color the most,” John Leguizamo, Golden Globe-nominated actor and social justice advocate. “We must shift to clean energy so our most vulnerable brothers and sisters are no longer put on the front lines of dangerous pollution and climate impacts.”
The rooftop solar policy most directly under attack is called “net metering,” which is the process where the owner of a solar panel is paid fair rates by the power company for the electricity they are contributing to the electricity grid. Utility and power companies across the country are attempting to curtail the rates paid back to customers, which creates fewer incentives for people to invest in solar. In the past 5 years, state legislatures or state public service commissions in Hawaii, Nevada, Arizona, Maine and Indiana have cut net metering programs, stunting the growth of solar in some of the sunniest parts of our nation. Nevada’s program has since been reinstated.
“Solar energy is a bright, positive solution for powering America today, creating new jobs and economic opportunities, and building a better future,” said Mary Anne Hitt, Director of the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign. “The efforts by utility companies to undermine the growth of solar energy is unfair to families, workers and business owners alike. As more people become determined to tackle our nation’s climate crisis, we must protect these programs that plays a key role in moving our country beyond coal and gas to clean, renewable energy.”
To watch the video on YouTube, please visit https://youtu.be/cF0Tk9o_rb0
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.